2/22/2013 - U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. -- Fifteen cadets were recognized for academic excellence at a Dean's Aces dinner held Feb. 7 for achieving perfect 4.0 GPAs during the fall 2012 semester.

The Dean's Aces Dinner, first held in 2005, recognizes those few cadets who distinguish themselves academically.

"The aim of the Dean's Aces dinner is to recognize cadets who have truly distinguished themselves academically," said Brig. Gen. Dana Born, the Academy's dean of the faculty. "In the 4,007-member cadet wing, only 15 cadets earned a 4.0 GPA in the fall semester."

The fall 2012 Aces list includes two freshmen, five sophomores, four juniors and four seniors.

Cadet 2nd Class Blake Abrecht was recognized as an Ace for the fourth time in five semesters. Abrecht was one of three cadets to achieve this level of academic distinction while studying on exchange at the U.S. Military Academy or the U.S. Naval Academy. Four other cadets maintained top academic marks while competing on intercollegiate athletic teams.

"Maintaining a 4.0 was extremely challenging, particularly when balancing schoolwork with college athletics," said Cadet 1st Class Conor Henry.

Academy Superintendent Lt. Gen. Mike Gould and Born both spoke at the dinner, held at the Falcon Club, each stressing what they called "the important role academic growth has to play in leadership development."

"This was one of my proudest achievements at the Academy," said Cadet 1st Class William Smedley VII. "The atmosphere at the dinner was great, and it afforded (us) a wonderful opportunity to speak with senior Academy leaders."

The Dean's Aces list was inspired by the late Brig. Gen Robert McDemott, the first dean of the faculty at the Academy, Born said. The general, for whom the Academy's McDermott Library is named, is often referred to as the "father of modern military education" for his contributions to the Academy's mission of educating and developing leaders of character.

The 15 cadets placed on the Fall 2012 Dean's Aces List were:

Name

Cadet Squadron

Major

Notes

Cadet 1st Class Conor Henry

CS 07

Systems Engineering Management

(A)

Cadet 1st Class Justin Sleeter

CS 21

Biology

Cadet 1st Class William Smedley VII

CS 28

Geospatial Science

(C)

Cadet 1st Class Michael Swartz

CS 09

Biology

(C)

Cadet 2nd Class Blake Abrecht

CS 01

Systems Engineering / Human Factors

(S)

Cadet 2nd Class Glen Hanson

CS 22

Meteorology

*

Cadet 2nd Class Elise Hill

CS 03

Biochemistry

Cadet 2nd Class Rachel Kennedy

CS 12

Biology

Cadet 2nd Class Glamis Koh

CS 02

Astronautical Engineering

(S)

Cadet 3rd Class Rebecca Esselstein

CS 19

Astronautical Engineering

(S)

Cadet 3rd Clsas Christian Ferrarini

CS 01

Economics

(C)

Cadet 3rd Class Ayesha Hein

CS 23

Astronautical Engineering

(S)

Cadet 3rd Class Andrew Miller

CS 05

Astronautical Engineering

Cadet 3rd Class Alex Quiros

CS 31

Astronautical Engineering

(C)

Cadet 4th Class Josh Bradley

CS 12

undeclared

(S)

Cadet 4th Class Felix Knutson

CS 24

undeclared

(S)

* - Hanson was recognized Feb. 7 for his perfect GPA in the Spring 2012 semester, as he could not attend the previous Aces dinner.
(C) - Also named to Commandant's List, which includes cadets with military performance averages of 3.0 or higher.
(A) - Also named to Athletic Director's List, which includes cadets with physical education averages of 3.0 or higher.
(S) - Also named to Superintendent's List, which includes cadets whose GPAs, MPAs and PEAs are all 3.0 or higher in the same semester.